A Hollstein Christmas
by killerlions
Summary: A collection of Christmas-themed short stories, featuring Hollstein. For originalmeathead.
1. Chapter 1: The Collar

_Summary__: Laura thinks it would be funny to give Carmilla cat toys for Christmas._

"I thought you said we were shopping for Christmas presents," LaFontaine told Laura, staring at an assortment of pet treats.

"We are!" Laura chirped.

"Dude. We're at PetSmart. And I'm pretty sure none of our friends have any pets. No pet rule at Silas, remember?"

"And you're absolutely right. That doesn't mean certain individuals, or individual, wouldn't be able to… _appreciate_ anything here. Now where's the cat aisle…" Laura said, distracted by her personal mission.

LaFontaine sighed, "Cat aisle? Now I'm positive you've lost your mind. No one has a cat at…" They paused when they noticed Laura picking up the biggest cat collar on display, a black leather piece decorated with silver spikes. "Hold on a second. Are you doing what I think you're doing?"

"Mm? Which is?"

"You're totally getting cat stuff for Carmilla, aren't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Laura replied, attempting to hide her giggle while picking out a stuffed cat toy in the shape of a cupcake. She squealed, "Oh, this is perfect!"

LaFontaine laughed, "I don't know if you're absolutely brilliant or completely nuts, but I want in. Where's that engraving machine for name tags?"

"Near the front of the store. Why?"

They grinned, "You'll see."

* * *

><p>'Twas the night before winter break, and everyone was cozily crammed into Laura and Carmilla's dorm room.<p>

Laura sat on her girlfriend's bed, with Carmilla's arm wrapped around her shoulders. Sprawled across Laura's bed, Danny laughed and rolled her eyes good-naturedly at Kirsch, sitting on the floor with his back leaning against the old wooden wardrobe. LaFontaine sat at Laura's desk, continuing to assure Perry that all of the decorations and food she prepared were perfect.

Standing up, Perry clapped her hands, "Okay, everyone! It's time to exchange gifts!"

Immediately, Laura squealed, jumping out of Carmilla's arms and retrieving the gift bag she hid beneath her bed. By the time she returned to Carmilla's side of the room, Carmilla sat with her hands behind her back and a devilish smirk on her face. "Mind if I go first, cutie," she purred.

Laura smiled, "No, of course!"

Pulling out what was hidden behind her back, Carmilla showed Laura a long, rectangular velvet box. She slowly opened the case, revealing an intricate bracelet lined with black diamonds and silver.

"Oh my gosh," Laura gasped, covering her open mouth with her hands, "Carm, this is too much… This must have cost you a fortune!"

Carmilla pulled out the bracelet and wrapped it around Laura's delicate wrist, "I know we agreed on no extravagant gifts, but I technically didn't spend a penny. This belonged to my mother, my real mother. It's the only thing I have left from my past life. And before you say no, I want you to have it, cupcake."

"I love it, Carm. It's perfect," she leaned in to kiss her girlfriend. Remembering what she got for Carmilla, Laura bit her lip, "You can open your gift now. But remember that I love you, okay? Please don't hate me."

"Nothing in this world could make me hate you, sweetheart," Carmilla assured her, pulling out pieces of tissue paper from the snowflake-covered bag. She dragged her hand out of the bag, revealing a soft, pink cupcake toy. Carmilla chuckled, "A cupcake from my cupcake, huh? Clever." As she placed it on the bed, a jingling sound came from the plush toy. "Well, that's odd."

"Keep looking," Laura urged her, anxiously running her fingers through her honey blonde hair.

Amused by Laura's nervousness, Carmilla reached into the gift bag, taking out a large ball of black yarn. "Hmm. Well. Knitting is a hobby I've yet to explore in my three hundred years. Better now than never, right?"

Laura huffed, "Just keep going. Last one."

Looking in the bag for the final piece of the present, Carmilla furrowed her eyebrows, "What the frilly hell…" She pulled out the black leather cat collar.

"I know, it's stupid, I thought it would be funny to give you cat toys since you're this huge badass black cat, and I feel terrible because you got me this beautiful bracelet that was your mom's and it means so much to you, and here I am pulling this stupid joke, and I'm a terrible girlfriend, and I totally understand if you hate me right now but I-" Laura's rambling was cut off by a pair of soft lips.

"I've got to hand it to you, cupcake. This is probably the strangest gesture of love I've ever received. And that's coming from a three hundred year old vampire who seduced girls for a living," Carmilla smirked, her eyes twinkling.

It was Laura's turn to be confused. She pouted, "What in the world are you talking about?"

Carmilla gestured to the collar in her hands, pointing to a round, silver tag. It read, "CARMILLA. IF FOUND, RETURN TO LAURA."

"B-but I didn't…"

"You're welcome!" LaFontaine yelled from the other side of the room.


	2. Chapter 2: The Tree

_Summary__: Laura convinces Carmilla they need a Christmas tree for their dorm room._

"What about this one?"

"No."

"Okay, this one."

"No."

"Alright, you _have_ to like _this_ one."

"Unsurprisingly, I don't."

Laura threw her hands up in exasperation, "Carm, we're never going to get a tree if you keep rejecting each and every one of them!"

"I'm not rejecting them. I just don't think they would look good in our dorm. Besides, what college student puts a Christmas tree in their dorm room?" Carmilla crossed her arms, looking pointedly at her girlfriend.

"But it's Christmas! _And_ it's our first Christmas together. We _have_ to get a tree," Laura pouted.

Softening at the sight of Laura's pout, Carmilla sighed, "Fine. But only because it's you, cutie."

Someone behind the couple coughed, "Whipped."

Carmilla turned around, staring daggers at LaFontaine and the Christmas tree they were holding for Perry.

Shrugging, LaFontaine grinned, "Hey, don't look at me! This is for the dorm's recreation room! Got to keep the place looking festive, right?"

Carmilla rolled her eyes, "You're lucky that you're our ride back to campus."

Grabbing her girlfriend's hand, Laura chuckled, "Be nice! Now c'mon, let's go find our tree."

* * *

><p>An hour and some mild bickering later ("That tree is hideous." "Don't be mean! You don't know that tree's life!"), Laura and Carmilla sat snuggled together in the backseat of LaFontaine's truck, with Perry and LaFontaine in the front and two healthy pine trees attached to the truck bed.<p>

Carmilla dragged the tree to their dorm room, leaving a trail of pine needles down the hall. Immediately scolded by Perry, Carmilla huffed, "But I have to keep the place looking _festive_, y'know?"

Once the tree was settled in the middle of the room, Laura squealed in excitement and rushed off to fetch the Christmas decorations her father sent in the mail.

"Well, this should be fun," Carmilla mumbled, eyeing the tree from her sprawled position on Laura's bed. Raising an eyebrow, she watched as Laura stumbled into the room with a box as big as Laura herself. "What do you got there, sweetheart? Another Christmas tree?"

"Ha, ha. Very funny. This," Laura gestured to the large box,"Is all the decorations we need to turn this place into the most Christmas-y dorm room in Silas!"

"I'm overwhelmed with joy," Carmilla smirked, standing up to wrap her arms around her girlfriend's waist.

Pouting once again, Laura sighed, "You're not excited. It's just, my family used to go all out for every Christmas. But ever since my mom…" Her now watery eyes were trained on the ground.

Carmilla used one of her hands to pull up Laura's chin until their eyes met, "Cupcake. I'm kidding. What is important to you is important to me. You know that all I want is for you to be happy."

Laura sniffled, her face breaking out into a small smile, "Wow, LaFontaine was right."

"And why's that, creampuff?" Carmilla tucked a strand of Laura's hair behind her ear.

"You really are whipped," Laura giggled, all remnants of sadness gone.

Glad that her girlfriend was in a better mood, Carmilla rolled her eyes, "Whatever. Can we decorate this stupid tree now?" Getting a look from her girlfriend, Carmilla added, "Okay, I know. Trees have feelings, too. It's not a stupid tree."

Laura grinned and gave Carmilla a quick kiss, "That's the spirit!" She quickly opened the box of decorations and began to take out various Christmas items. "Here, you put up the lights, and I'll start on the ornaments."

Giving her girlfriend another kiss, Carmilla did as she was told, listening to Laura hum cheesy Christmas songs for the rest of the evening.

* * *

><p>Soon enough, their room was adorned in Christmas decorations from floor to ceiling. Wrapped in lights and red ribbon, the tree was covered with sparkling red and gold bulbs. More glowing lights stretched across the dorm's ceiling, and a traditional wreath was hung on the door.<p>

However, one crucial piece was missing. Laura stood with her head leaning on Carmilla's shoulder, squinting at the top of the beautifully decorated pine tree, "I can't believe we don't have a tree topper."

Carmilla shrugged, her movements limited by Laura's head, "Eh, we'll survive. It's not our fault your dad forgot to pack one. Besides, the place looks beautiful, cupcake."

"You're right. But the topper is always the _pièce de résistance_, y'know?"

"I know, _ma chérie_. Even without it, you did a kickass job turning our room into _this_," Carmilla vaguely waved her hand around.

"_We_ did a kickass job," Laura mumbled, stifling a yawn.

Carmilla kissed her temple, "Alright, how about you get ready for bed? I'll wait out here."

Failing to conceal another yawn, Laura nodded and stumbled off into the bathroom, leaving Carmilla to continue staring at the empty space at the top of the tree.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Laura woke up in Carmilla's bed to the sunlight hitting her face. She noticed her girlfriend's absence with a huff, sitting up and rubbing her tired eyes. Once she was at least semi-conscious of her surroundings, Laura felt another presence in the room.<p>

In front of her sat a large, black panther, staring at her with bright, yellow eyes. An intricate golden star was carefully positioned between its teeth.

"Carm? What are you doing?" Laura once again rubbed her eyes, assuring herself that she was indeed still awake.

The panther turned away, gracefully jumping onto Laura's bed and to the top of the old wooden wardrobe. The cat carefully situated the star-shaped topper onto the tree, graciously jumping down to the floor in front of Laura. Shrinking to a smaller form, Carmilla shifted into a human, a playful smirk across her face, "What do you think, cutie?"

Laura squealed, jumping up to hug her girlfriend's shoulders, "It's perfect! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Carmilla grinned, wrapping her arms around Laura's waist, "Merry Christmas, cupcake."


	3. Chapter 3: The Stocking Stuffer

_Summary__: Laura and Carmilla help Perry and LaFontaine make stocking stuffers. (Inspired by Perry's line in Episode 34.)_

Carmilla sighed, "_Why_ am I doing this?"

"Because we promised Perry we would help her wrap gifts for the hall, remember?" Laura tightened her hold on Carmilla's hand.

Carmilla huffed and dragged her leather boots across the wooden floor of the hallway, allowing her girlfriend to unceremoniously tug her towards Perry's dorm.

"And besides, if it weren't for Perry and LaFontaine, we would have never found out where your mom was holding the sacrifice, and _you,_" Laura poked Carmilla's stomach, "Wouldn't have been able to save everyone."

"Oh, please. I just didn't want you getting eaten is all. I could care less about those dimwits."

Laura smiled, rolling her eyes, "Uh-huh. It wasn't all that heroic vampire crap?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, cupcake," Carmilla smirked.

Laura's smile widened, "Whatever you say, Carm."

Stopping outside of Perry's room, Laura knocked on the door. The couple was soon greeted by LaFontaine, "Finally! Took you two long enough," their voice dropped to a whisper, "Perry is getting a bit stressed out about the stocking stuffers. Fair warning," they stepped back, allowing Laura and Carmilla to enter the room.

"What's a stocking stuf-" Carmilla never finished her sentence.

"_Wow,_" Laura breathed out while Carmilla raised an eyebrow, her mouth slightly agape.

Perry's room was the equivalent to a holiday-themed warzone. In addition to the overly festive decorations of the dorm itself, various rolls of Christmas wrapping paper laid across the bed, desk, and floor. Ribbons of assorted colors were strewn haphazardly across the room, and numerous candy canes were left in random places. Sitting on the corner of her bed, Perry was knitting a red stocking to add to the growing pile by her feet. Her curly, red mane was put up in a ponytail, a single stray strand hanging loosely across her face.

"You _knitted_ stockings for all thirty girls on our floor?" Carmilla incredulously asked. Laura stood frozen beside her girlfriend, still in shock from the sight before her.

Perry finally looked up from her work, "Ah, hello! It's forty, actually. I just wanted everyone to get something nice and homemade."

"And you couldn't have, I don't know, baked _cookies_? _Not _knit them each a personalized stocking with their _names_ stitched on?"

Perry began to nod enthusiastically, "Oh, I already did! But the cookies aren't personalized, though I suppose I could have iced their initials onto them…"

Carmilla shook her head, turning to Laura, "Careful, cupcake. You'll catch flies," she lightly closed Laura's mouth with a single finger to the chin.

Snapping out of her shock, Laura slowly moved her gaze from stocking mountain to Perry, "Okay. This is _way_ too much for you two to do alone. How can we help?"

Perry's eyes lit up, "Laura, you can start by putting the cookies into those little bags right there on the desk. Each stocking gets a bag of five cookies. Carmilla, if you don't mind, could you start tying the candy canes together? We need a bundle of three candy canes for each stocking. There's some ribbon… everywhere, so take your pick!"

While Laura went to clear a space on the desk for her to work, Carmilla gave Perry a mock salute and plopped down onto the floor next to LaFontaine. She cut off a piece of green ribbon with a pair of scissors and picked up three candy canes, cautiously wrapping the ribbon around the stems.

_*SNAP*_

"Crap," Carmilla muttered, staring down at the broken cane in her hand. She had tied the knot too tight. She reached out for a replacement candy cane.

"So you don't know what a stocking stuffer is, huh?" LaFontaine asked, still engrossed in their own job.

Carmilla continued to work on the bundle of candy canes, "Nope."

"Do you understand the concept behind stockings?"

"Yes," Carmilla nodded, "People, for whatever reason, enjoy hanging oversized socks on their neglected fireplaces during the Christmas time."

LaFontained chuckled, "Exactly. A stocking _stuffer_ is exactly what it's called. In addition to hanging up gargantuan socks upon their mantles, people also enjoy stuffing said socks with random little gifts, or stocking stuffers. For example, _this,_" they raised up a small jar filled with sparkling water and tiny plastic toys, "Is what we would call a homemade snow globe."

"Seems unnecessary."

"Eh, what can you do, y'know? It's tradition," LaFontaine then drifted away from the conversation, occupied by their snow globe project.

Carmilla lightly tightened the ribbon around the candy canes, "Ugh, finally. Only… thirty-nine more bundles to go," her shoulders dropped, "This is going to be a long day."

* * *

><p>Laura placed the fifth cookie in the plastic bag and tied a red ribbon around the opening. Only two more bags until she was finally done.<p>

_*SNAP*_

"DAMN IT!"

Hearing another one of her girlfriend's uproars, Laura turned around in her swivel chair to find a crushed up candy cane in Carmilla's hand, another victim to be added to the growing heap on the floor. Various colors of ribbon were messily spread across Carmilla's leather pants. Laura sighed, "Carm, that has to be like the fourteenth candy cane you've broken today."

"Seventeenth," LaFontaine corrected without looking up from the snow globe in their hands.

"These imbecilic candies are too frail. They can't handle the confines of these wretched ribbons," Carmilla growled.

"Ouch. I'm glad I'm not a candy cane. That's harsh," LaFontaine laughed, receiving a death glare from Carmilla.

Shaking her head, Laura chuckled, "How many do you have left? I'm almost finished. When I'm done, I can help-"

"I've got it," Carmilla muttered, determined to finish her assigned task.

Turning around to finish the last bags of cookies, Laura sighed, "Whatever you say, Carm."

* * *

><p><em>*RAWR*<em>

Hearing a loud growl behind her, Laura whipped around to see a large black panther covered in red and green ribbon. The cat bared its sharp white teeth at a pile of broken candy canes by its paws.

Standing protectively in front of Perry, LaFontaine's heartbeat slowly returned to normal, "She broke another candy cane, and I guess she finally lost it and went all Hulk. Or uh, cat. But don't worry. Minimal injuries. Only one snow globe was smashed. We're all good."

Laura stood up with her hands on her hips, "Carmilla Karnstein!"

Immediately, the black cat turned its attention to Laura, cowering low to the ground with flattened ears and enlarged kitten-like eyes. The panther let out a small, pathetic mew.

"That's it, we're going home," Laura stomped over to Carmilla, grabbing one of the cat's ears and dragging her towards the door, "I'm really sorry, you guys. I'll make sure she helps you hang up all the stockings."

Perry smiled, "Oh, it's alright, Laura. We're almost done with everything anyways. Thanks for all of the help! Even if panther Carmilla made an appearance."

"Oh, she'll make up for it. See you guys at the brunch tomorrow!" Laura waved, closing the door and towing the large panther towards their dorm.

LaFontaine turned to face Perry, "You can't say she didn't try."

Perry nodded, "She did a better job than my corgi. I'd take Carmilla's help over Louie's any day. Remember the hot cocoa jars?"

LaFontaine shuddered, "How could I forget?"


	4. Chapter 4: The Sweater

_Summary: Carmilla needs a sweater for the Silas Ugly Sweater Holiday Bash. (Inspired by the Carmilla Christmas Special.)_

Walking hand-in-hand down the hallway, Laura noticed a poster on the bulletin board. She tugged on Carmilla's hand, pulling her girlfriend to a stop, "Look! Silas Ugly Sweater Holiday Bash. It's this Friday! We should go!" The poster showed a reindeer wearing a horrendous red and green sweater.

Carmilla rolled her eyes, "Absolutely not. Why would I voluntarily wear an ugly sweater?"

"Because it's fun! Ugly Christmas sweaters are the best!" Laura received a dubious look from Carmilla, "Oh, c'mon! This is the only time of the year when it's socially acceptable to wear scratchy, cheesy sweaters."

"That's unacceptable every day of the year, cupcake."

Laura huffed, "_Fine. _You're no fun." With a pout, Laura dramatically dropped Carmilla's hand and continued walking towards their dorm with an exaggerated sigh.

Shaking her head with a light chuckle, Carmilla returned her gaze to the two-dimensional reindeer, "I suppose it wouldn't be _too_ dreadful. Now where can I find an ugly sweater…"

* * *

><p>"You've come to the right place, my friend."<p>

Carmilla and LaFontaine stood before a large wooden wardrobe filled with several pieces of LaFontaine's clothing. The closet currently featured snowman-clad shirts, numerous Santa hats, snowflake-covered socks, and, of course, a wide variety of ugly Christmas sweaters.

LaFontaine turned to Carmilla with a grin, "Pick your poison."

* * *

><p>After rifling through LaFontaine's collection of holiday-themed apparel, Carmilla fell face-first onto LaFontaine's bed, letting out an exasperated groan of surrender. She rejected every single one of LaFontaine's Christmas sweaters.<p>

"Y'know, for a centuries old vampire whose wardrobe consists of 98% black apparel, leather pants, and band shirts, you sure are picky," LaFontaine laughed.

Carmilla shifted until she was lying on her back, "I just don't want to be caught wearing something so atrocious."

"Dude. That's the whole point of an ugly Christmas sweater party – wearing the most atrocious thing you can find. You _want_ it to look like Christmas threw up on you."

Carmilla grumbled, "That's ludicrous."

"It's _fun_," LaFontaine stood up from their seat on the floor, "Alright. Get up, you useless vampire. It's time for plan B."

* * *

><p>"Are you done yet?" Carmilla mumbled from her sprawled position on the floor of Perry's dorm. She was soon hit in the face by a candy cane, "Hey, watch it!"<p>

"Be patient and stop complaining. You should be grateful that Perry is even doing this for you," LaFontaine scolded, continuing to chew on their own candy cane.

Turning her head towards the floor don, Carmilla sighed, "Thank you for doing this, Perry. You're doing me a huge favor."

"Not a problem, Carmilla. You know how much I enjoy knitting. As long as you don't get angry and turn into a giant panther again…" Perry stopped what she was doing to give Carmilla a pointed look.

Ducking her head, Carmilla had the decency to look slightly embarrassed, "Uh, yeah. Again, I'm _really_ sorry about that."

"Oh, it's alright," Perry smiled and returned to her knitting project.

LaFontaine laughed, "Yeah, you really showed those candy canes who's boss, Catmilla."

Carmilla groaned at hearing LaFontaine's newly created nickname. Ever since the stocking stuffer incident, LaFontaine has taken every opportunity to mess with 'Catmilla.'

"Finished!" Perry exclaimed, proudly holding up a bright red sweater. Woven onto the front was an angry-looking cat wearing a Santa hat.

LaFontaine bursted into a laughing fit, "Is th-that Grumpy Cat?! Oh gosh, Catmilla! It's p-perfect for you!"

Rolling her eyes at LaFontaine, Carmilla stood up, taking the sweater from Perry and slipping it on, "Hmm. It's not as scratchy as I expected it to be. Aren't Christmas sweaters supposed to be scratchy?"

Perry shrugged, "I figured you wouldn't want to wear something hideous _and_ uncomfortable."

Carmilla gave Perry a genuine smile, "Thanks. It's not _too_ hideous." She looked at her reflection in the floor-length mirror on Perry's wall, "It actually kind of suits me." Carmilla turned around to look at the pair, donning a scowl similar to the cat's facial expression.

Seeing the uncanny similarities between Carmilla and the cat, LaFontaine burst into another laughing fit, eventually joined by Perry. Carmilla chuckled at her friends' antics, looking down to examine her newly acquired Christmas sweater.

* * *

><p>Friday afternoon, Carmilla returned to her dorm after class to find Laura taking a nap. Silently closing the door behind her, Carmilla carefully crept towards her wardrobe, pulling out the cat sweater. She slowly put it on and kneeled by Laura's bedside, "Hey, cutie. Wake up. You have to get ready for the party."<p>

Hearing her girlfriend's voice, Laura stirred from her nap, "Hmm? Party? What party?" Her eyes still closed, she turned to face Carmilla.

"The Silas Ugly Sweater Holiday Bash, sweetheart. You want to go, don't you?" Carmilla purred, running her fingers through Laura's hair.

Opening her tired eyes, Laura finally looked at her girlfriend's face, "Yeah, but _you_ don't. We can just stay in tonight. Watch movies. Order pizza. Cuddle." She closed her eyes again, reveling in the feeling of Carmilla's fingers running through her hair, "Cuddling sounds good."

Carmilla lightly chuckled, "As lovely as that sounds, darling, I'd hate to waste this repulsive sweater I'm wearing on a lazy night in."

Suddenly wide-awake, Laura sat up, taking a good look at Carmilla's attire, "Oh. My. Gosh."

"What do you think, creampuff? Perry made it for me." Carmilla smiled, stepping back to allow Laura a better view of her sweater.

"It's _adorable_!" Laura squealed. She jumped out of bed, rushing towards the bathroom, "Give me a second to get ready!"

Laughing at her girlfriend's excitement, Carmilla plopped down on Laura's bed, leaning her head back on the yellow pillow.

* * *

><p>Walking hand-in-hand at the party, Laura and Carmilla ran into Perry and LaFontaine.<p>

"Nice sweater, Catmilla," LaFontaine smirked.

"I know, right? Isn't it perfect for her?" Laura giggled, pinching Carmilla's cheek.

Carmilla grimaced, unknowingly making a grumpy expression like the cat on her sweater, causing the group to erupt in laughter.


End file.
